PARKERSBURG -Local hotels are seeing a decline in occupancy revenues, but not necessarily in the occupancy of rooms.

Local hoteliers say business travel has been down while tourism travel has remained steady.

Cecil Childress, general manager of the Blennerhassett Hotel, said the preferred corporate travel has been soft. Childress said the individual business travel has been holding, but group business meetings and travel have dropped.

"The people that pay our strongest rates, that is the market segment that is down," he said.

Alan Hardway, vice president of hotel operations for MPH Hotels, which includes the Mineral Wells Holiday Inn Express and the Wingate Inn in Vienna, said companies are pulling back on group business travel.

"We are down in occupancy because companies are not allowing people to travel, or are having meetings at headquarters or on the Web."

Hardway said rates have also fallen among business groups. According to Hardway this time of year businesses begin rate negotiations with hotel chains. Rather than increase, many of those rates are remaining the same.

Hardway said some businesses have even asked for an additional discount in the rates.

To offset the drop in business, tourism and leisure travel has been up.

Childress said the discounting of rates and package deals, offering culinary weekends for example, is making up for some of the soft business travel.

"We are going to try to be as competitive as we can and make sure customers are not looking elsewhere," he said.

"We are a niche hotel when it comes to the leisure market. We have to have a niche product to entice people from Charleston, Columbus and Pittsburgh."

Childress said the hotel has seen solid numbers for the upcoming Christmas and wedding season.

Steve Nicely, president of the Greater Parkersburg Convention and Visitors Bureau, said they are trying to capitalize on the increase in leisure travel to the area. Nicely said the bureau is trying to produce multi-day itineraries for prospective travelers.

"We are looking specifically at activities that generate overnight stays," he said. "We want to let people know there are more things to do and see than one day will allow."

Nicely said occupancy may be down - some studies suggest rates have fallen as much as 17 percent nationally - but the decline is much less here compared to the national average.

"What we are seeing is a slight drop in room nights sold, but there is less of a drop in room revenues. Hotels get more for rooms sold for leisure purposes," he said.

Hardway and Childress expect the business travel to remain stagnant well into next year.

"On the corporate side people are not quick to react," Hardway said.